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Over halfway through the season, Brentford are in fantasy land.

Following four wins in five games, and a Samba striker netting the goals, suddenly Bees fans are dreaming of thoughts of trips to European capitals next season.

A convincing 3-0 win over the Black Cats moved Keith Andrews' side into fifth in the top flight – a place that was sufficient to secure European football last term.

Solely table-toppers the Gunners have gathered more points over the past half-dozen matches.

There is a long way to go yet but the West London outfit are squarely in the battle for continental football.

No one was predicting this last summer.

Thomas Frank had departed for Tottenham after a seven-year stint in charge, a period in which he had not only got the club to the Premier League but also established them in the elite division.

Skipper Christian Norgaard left for Arsenal and attacking duo two key forwards – who scored a combined of thirty-nine goals in 2024-25 – were out the door, joining Manchester United and Newcastle United respectively.

Specialist coach Andrews was promoted to succeed Frank, while there was a notable absence of a centre-forward among the summer signings.

A year of struggle, possibly even relegation, was widely predicted. Yet here we are in January with Brentford in the top five.

So, what is behind their success?

The Brazilian's Record-breaking Season

The club's decision not to bring in another striker was partly down to timing, with Wissa's move not being finalized until deadline day.

But they also were aware they had a £30m striker already waiting to go.

Igor Thiago joined from Club Brugge in July 2024 for a then club record fee, but was hindered by fitness issues in his first campaign, going goalless in eight appearances.

The 24-year-old has set about compensating for lost time this season, though, with his brace against the Wearside club taking him to sixteen league goals – the most by a player from Brazil in a single English top-flight campaign.

Given the fellow Brazilians who have preceded him, that is a remarkable feat, especially with seventeen matches remaining.

"He has been a revelation," former Liverpool midfielder an analyst said. "He's a physical specimen, fast, strong, but technically better than people think. Good with his feet, either foot, he can score with both. You can see he's full of confidence. These numbers are fantastic. He must be so proud. That's a huge compliment to him."

That only Erling Haaland, Harry Kane and Kylian Mbappe have scored more in any of Europe's top five leagues to this point shows the level he is playing at.

And it is not just the quantity but the crucial nature of the goals that have been so vital for his team.

His first goal against the opposition was his 7th opener of the season. Given how often we are told the significance of the initial strike in a game, having someone you can depend on to take that first big chance cannot be underestimated.

Before the game against their opponents, no player to have attempted at least thirty efforts this season has a better shot accuracy rate than the striker's 59.1 percent.

He finds the target. Do that consistently and the goals will – and have – come.

Given the struggles he had in his youth, where he labored in construction to support his family following the death of his father, perhaps it should be unsurprising that high-stakes situations on the pitch is something he takes in his stride.

"The recruitment team deserve a lot of praise for the kind of players they bring in and characters," Andrews said. "This is really impressive. He is a really unique person who has adapted to life very nicely. He has had to earn this path. He has earned his journey and toiled. He has got serious grit about his personality. He is developing his skill set constantly and we are discovering more and more about him. He is a pretty complete centre-forward."

The Manager Showing Doubters Wrong

Their star striker is the man of the moment but the team are not and have never been a single-player team.

While they had key individuals – a host of talent – under Frank, they were always seen as a team more effective than the individual components.

The fear was that once the Dane left, that may not be the case, and that the collective quality of their parts alone might not be enough to avoid relegation.

Consequently, appointing Andrews, with no previous managerial experience, and just a year at the club was seen by those external observers as a huge risk.

A maiden role is a challenge for anyone, especially when it comes in the world's toughest league and having made the jump from specialist coach to the top job.

But given that Ipswich Town manager one candidate was the only other option that Brentford looked at, they were clearly confident they had the correct candidate.

To date, as often seems to be the case with the brains trust at Brentford, it looks as if they were spot on.

The new boss won just a single of his first five league games in charge but significant home victories against United, Liverpool and the Magpies have followed.

Results that, following their excellent recent run, could prove increasingly important in the pursuit for Europe.

"We are in good form and playing really good. We are playing with courage and belief in everything we do with and without the ball," he added. "We're pleased with how we are going but we want to keep striving."

In a league where the European spots and the lower mid-table are currently separated by just eight points, they have no other option, because things could rapidly look very different.

But, for now, The Bees are defying the predictions. And the longer that lasts, the closer to reality those dreams of the continent will become.